Hi there, I've been studying on and off the past few months and I've been trying to ease back into studying as I'm planning to retake the LSAT soon. Does anyone have any advice for inconsistency in RC (I feel like my range can be from something like -2 to -9 even)?
I feel like I have LR down pretty well but RC just feels very random for me. It makes sense given I've maybe done 1/10 as much practice on RC compared to LR but I'm looking for ways to improve my focus and timing. It feels weird because I feel like I was initially much more proficient on RC at the start of my prep and it's pretty much flipped.
Could anyone with similar experience or someone who's really good at RC advise me on how to improve quick and comment on what really helped you improve or what you think makes you consistent or solid on RC? Thanks so much.
13 comments
RC can feel all over the place sometimes, like one tough passage or timing thing can throw off your whole section. I’d just track each passage by itself for eg/ how long you spent, what type it was, which questions you missed, and why. Makes it way easier to see what’s actually going on.
When you’re reading, focus on what each paragraph is doing, the different viewpoints, any big shifts, and the main idea. Don’t stress about remembering every detail. When you review, check where the right answer is in the text and see what makes the wrong ones tricky.
Since you haven’t done as much RC as LR, I’d start with single untimed passages, then try some timed, and work up to full sections. Just keep doing the same reading and review steps each time. That’s how you get consistent, not just by grinding out more passages.
@Asma Thank you!
RC
PoE everything. Anticipating AC can be trap. You need to process of elimination, cannot move on too quickly for spectrum of support type questions.
Point @ text. AC should be found in the text. If you cannot find support in the text, it is the AC that is supported by text.
Read for context not content. We do not need to learn the subject matter or memorize the passage, we just need to be able to recognize the rhetorical moves, and quickly recall back to the passage. Understanding context helps the improve passage map making it more effective for AC application.
@NoNamed92 Thanks for the advice! I think maybe I'm trying to absorb too much as I'm reading passages in order to really understand (especially if I'm unfamiliar with the passage content). Do you have any advice for reading for context and not overdoing it?
@ryumi idk I was doing better with RC but have been falling back into the content reading instead of context which I think could explain my score retraction after good progress.
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Here is what my AI Tutor said, which illustrates with what I have been trying to communicate.
You're reading for:
when many RC questions are asking:
Those are different.
Example:
You finish a science passage and remember:
That's content.
But LSAT asks:
Now the answer isn't the fact itself.
It's something like:
That's function.
Hi! One trick I tried that got me from -6 (or, usually, more) on RC sections to -3 (or less) was reading each passage twice before answering questions, once for content and once for structure/author POV. I would spend about 1:30-1:45 each read-through, and the remaining 5:15-5:45 answering questions. This isn't a trick I've seen anywhere else and I figured it out by accident during an untimed practice section, but it consistently improved both my timing on questions and my understanding of the content. It might not be the magic solution but it's worth a try I think!
@KiraSkj Personally I don't know if I can read that fast but I'll try experimenting, thanks. If you have any advice for like speeding up reading without forgoing accuracy please lmk!
What's giving you trouble on RC? I advocate a high level read, making a "TOC" of the paragraphs, then using the time to go back and look answers based on what's asked in the questions. But its hard to give advice without knowing more specifically why you are missing the questions
@julielamberth Mainly timing and overthinking. I feel like I'm running out of time and struggle to finish which causes me to rush on the last 2 passages. Maybe I'm overthinking or spending too much time on certain questions? I honestly am not sure what's tripping me up given I haven't done too much RC practice.
@ryumi High level read, don't spend too long on the passage before you move on to the questions, connect to the passage to support answer choices.
Hi! Not about RC but was really impressed by your LR sections! Do you have any tips on how to manage time for LR? I get understand all the questions without time constraints but panic a lot when doing actual timed sections. Thank you!
@j_w180 Hi, thanks! For me what really made me see improvement for LR was just doing a ton of drills in my free time and answering questions for accuracy. For timing, try to be able to get halfway through the section with a lot more than half the time remaining and you're generally in a good spot (since the latter half is generally more difficult). I personally don't highlight at all for LR and if crossing out helps you see things more clearly I recommend it, that's what I do a lot of the time. Make sure you're not spending too much time on a specific question, skip and guess if you have to and come back to it.
@ryumi Thank you so much!